


Games We Play

by myfairwendybird



Category: True Blood
Genre: F/M, Multi, started off as a crack idea and its just gotten really out of hand
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-11
Updated: 2018-07-19
Packaged: 2018-10-17 15:56:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 16,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10597338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/myfairwendybird/pseuds/myfairwendybird
Summary: Set towards the end of the year of Sookie's disappearance, Eric is annoyingly obsessed and Pam enlists help from an unusual source to get her makers attention. Some Bill/Pam, but eventual Paric.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a random idea I had for a Bill/Pam story but if I continue this they’ll become more of a brotp probably because I’m all about that Paric life jsyk haha

_“Well, well_ , if it isn't _King_ Bill.” The blonde drawled with a mild amusement, placing a hand on her hip as she leant up against the door frame of his now fully furnished office. They’d had little to do with each other since Sookie Stackhouse had disappeared almost a year ago. In fact, this was the first time she’d seen the usually brooding vamp in months, _not that she was complaining._ There was no love lost between them after all.

 _“Pam?”_ He questioned, looking up with his burrows furrowed in confusion. He’d been no stranger to unexpected visitors since his ‘ _coronation’_ some months back, though usually he had a few moments warning on account of his guards surrounding the building. But even still, _Pam_ was the last person he expected to see. “What on earth are you doing here?” 

“ _You know_ , being as you're a _monarch_ and all now” She started in with her trademark smirk as she walked over slowly and took a seat opposite him, crossing her legs lazily over one arm of the expensive office chair, whilst propping her elbow up on the other. “You may want to work on your bedside manner”

Watching her with a keen interest, Bill found he almost missed her effortless snark. “Yes, that was rather rude of me.” He conceded, a light smirk finding his own lips as he dipped his head shamefully. “My apologies, _Ms De Beaufort._ Was there something I could help you with?” He corrected himself with an easy smile that most women would’ve swooned over. 

But of course Pamela wasn't most women and instead rolled her eyes and tried to suppress the urge to gag.“ _Well_ , I had come to see if come to see if Cheeto felt like hittin the town” The blonde explained and it finally occurred to the King why his guards wouldn't have felt it necessary to announce her presence. The Fantasia co-founder had been seen with his young progeny at her side more often than not since she’d stopped seeing Hoyt and this was hardly the first time she’d come to pick her up. “But as far as I can tell, _it seems she's made other plans_ ” She continued, her eyes scanning the otherwise empty house. “So, _maybe_.” Pam added finally, a coy smile curling the corners of her lips. 

“I’ve noticed you and Jessica have been getting along quite well recently.” Bill acknowledged, to which Pam responded by raising her eyebrows mockingly to show how _impressed_ she was by the observation. Shaking his head in amusement, the once soldier continued on undeterred. “I’m sorry to say you only just missed her. She left for the evening with one of her…male companions.” The redheads prude maker finished awkwardly, shooting a stern look in the blondes direction as she giggled at his obvious discomfort. “Though you may to stay as long as you like, my subjects are always welcome in my home.”

 _“Your subjects?”_ Pam scoffed in amusement _._ “I knew I was right about you, Bill Compton.You manage to fool just about everyone with your _southern charm_ and your whole _humbler than jesus_ act, but I knew better. You're just as fucken _power hungry_ and _egotistical_ as the next jerk off. You're loving every god damn second of this shit, aren't you? _King Bill.”_

Bill studied her silently for a long moment, stoic as ever, trying to decide whether to be annoyed or impressed with how perceptive she was. If he didn't know better he would've thought she was some sort of psychologist in her human life, the way she managed to get under his skin so expertly and throw in his face all the ugly truths about himself he tried so desperately to hide from the world. _Because she was right. He loved every second of this shit._ The power, the control, everything down to the renovations of his formerly derelict mansion. 

“Has something happened between you and Eric? Usually you’d be pestering him with your colourfully articulated observations, would you not?” He replied finally, redirecting her attentions in hopes of avoiding the question.

Pam rolled merely her eyes in response, knowing full well what he was doing. _Typical_ , she thought with a shake or her pretty blonde head, before allowing the change of subject, the beginnings of an idea forming in her devious mind. “No, nothing’s _happened_ between me and Eric. For something to _happen_ between us, he would have to stop obsessing over _Tinkerbelle_ and her little hillbilly hut of a house for all of ten seconds to remember I existed.” She confessed, her voice dripping with frustration and disdain. Her attempts to get her marker’s attention as of late had been failing miserably. All he cared about was getting that fucking house perfect for when she returned, and he was so sure she would. He was so certain of it if she didn't know better, _she’d think he took her himself just to fuck with everybody._

Though his progeny wasn't the only one to notice the special attention Northman had been devoting to the renovations on Sookie’s - or rather his house now. Bill of course didn't approve and was more than a little irritated himself, but what was there to do? At this stage he had almost entirely resigned himself to the fact that his love was likely dead, if Northman chose to live in denial about it, _who was he to say he couldn’t?_

Bill could tell though, beyond her cool exterior Pam wasn't just annoyed that Eric was preoccupied. Ever since he’d decided he wanted Sookie there had been a distance between the usually inseparable pair and he could see the hurt behind her eyes. _The blonde had never taken well to being ignored_. He didn't pretend to know much about the bond they shared but he knew they'd been intimate in the past, to his knowledge that had ended long ago but looking at her now, he couldn't help but think there was more to it than that. “I can see how Eric’s.. _infatuation_..with Sookie may be hard for you-“ He tried awkwardly but was quickly cut off.

 _“Hard for me?_ ” She repeated, singing her legs off the side of the chair in one swift motion so she could sit upright. “You think I’m ** _jealous?_** _Of buck tooth barbie?”_ The blonde chuckled darkly, a little more bite to her words than usual, letting the King know he’d hit a nerve. “Do you know how many humans Eric has been with in our time together? How many **_beautiful_** women. Women, I might add that make little miss super snatch look like the wrong end of a donkey.” She went on, silently counting herself among them. “ _Actresses, supermodels, princesses_ , he’s had em all. He’s loved, he’s lost and he’s done it all over again _with me at his side._ But this is different. Theres something about her… _something in her blood_ that has him obsessed like I've never seen him before. _To the point where I'm barely an after thought.”_ Pam finished with a palpable sadness that had her companions chest tightening involuntarily.

“Pamela..” He tried softly, unsure of how to comfort a woman he thought made of stone. “I-I don’t know what to say to-“

In a flash, the former madam cut him off once again, jumping across his desk at vamp speed and straddling his lap.“Then just shut up” She instructed with a raspy whisper before capturing his lips with her own. 

“ _Pam?!_ ” Bill exclaimed, confusion and outrage marring his features as he jumped back from her slightly, though not enough to push her off. 

“Ugh. Don’t be such a pussy, Compton.” The blonde sighed heavily before tearing his shirt open and latching her mouth onto his collarbone. “ _What the hell are you-“_

“ _Look Sherlock._ It’s real simple, but if you need it explained to you then fine.” Pam pulled back, frustrated that it was taking the moron this long to get with the program. “We fuck, Eric finds out about it, and Eric stops thinking about your little blonde gash for five whole minutes.”

She deadpanned. Pam may not have been the jealous type usually, but Eric sure as hell was, and there was no doubt in her mind that when her Viking god heard word of this little..tryst. He’d forget all about the little waitress in his rage, and whatever punishment that came of it would be more than worth it.

Ever the gentleman however, it seemed Bill still wasn't quite convinced. Hesitating both because he felt when her pain dissipated the younger vampire would regret her impulsive decision and because the part of him that remained hopeful that Sookie was still alive wondered what she’d think of him if she found out. Though the gorgeous blonde above him would hardly be the first.. _distraction_ he’d indulged in since her disappearance. “Pam, I understand you wanting to get Eric’s attention but-“

“I’m aware, the lengths I'm going to are rather.. _extreme.”_ She conceded, racking her eyes over him in a distaste that was surprisingly a lot more forced than she would admit. “But the shock is bound to snap him out of whatever fucking spell her magic snatch has him under.”

Holding back a scoff at her deplorable language, he replied easily, though the smirk forming on his lips made it clear his words were just for show “and if I refuse?” 

“Well why would you, you're getting the better part of the deal” she shot back cockily. 

 _“Oh?”_ The King chuckled back, his hands moving up her thighs as he finally started to embrace the situation. “How, may I ask, do you suppose that is?”

A pleased smirk crossing her features, Pam let her hands trial down his bare chest with an expertise that hand him shifting in his seat trying to hide his body’s reaction to her cool touch. “To start, this is about to be _the best_ lay I _guarantee_ you've ever had in your _entire_ miserable life, and if all things go to plan and your little faerie queen isn't dead, then when she gets back Eric will be out of the way and you'll have a clear path to winning her back.” A sultry chuckle left her lips as she met his eyes to find she’d have no more argument from him.

“ _Well, if there are no more questions, your majesty, I propose we get this whole thing underway.”_


	2. Two

When Pam had boasted earlier about this being the best sex he’d ever had, Bill had thought it just that. A well delivered boast and a testament to her inflated ego. _But, Oh how true it had turned out to be._ Perhaps the southern King had underestimated her abilities, after all, she once did this for a living. But after the night they’d had, the brunette was certain he would never underestimate her ability to do _anything_ ever again. 

He lay there spent and more satisfied than he’d ever felt in his life as he watched her curse under her breath as she tried to find her clothes in amongst the mess they’d made of his room. The place looked like a disaster zone, broken furniture pieces thrown every which way, their contents littering the floor, evidence of the nights events. It was only then, in the aftermath that they realised they’d been going at it for hours; the better part of the night in fact, and now the blonde was in a hurry to find all her shit before the sun came up in a few minutes.

“Compton, you mind gettin your eyes of my ass for a minute and helping me find my bra so I can get the fuck out of here?” She sighed, straightening up to her full height with more confidence than anyone he’d ever met while standing before him completely naked. Bill had the decency to at least look embarrassed that he’d been caught staring at her shapely rear but the smirk she offered in response let him know she didn't really mind. 

“Pam, the sun is already rising. It seems foolish to risk leaving now. You should go to ground here” _With me._ Was what he left unspoken, unsure whether she’d welcome the idea if voiced out loud. “And you can run off as soon as the sun goes down.” The brunette added quickly, not wanting to appear as if he were trying to keep her there longer than strictly necessary.

The blonde considers his offer for a long moment, regarding him silently as she does so, as if weighing up her options. Unnerved by her lack of an answer, Bill opened his mouth to offer her her own room for the night, chastising himself internally for not doing so to start with, when finally, she agrees. “Fine. But stay on your side, I’m not into that whole cuddling crap.” She warned, dropping back into the bed beside him. His eyes met hers and he could hardly stifle a laugh as he raised his hands in surrender. 

“I wouldn't dare dream of it” he promised before they both died for the day.

Jessica, having come in not long after the sun had set, her make-up smudged and cocktail dress from the previous night worn hap-hazardously telling how quickly she’d thrown it back on before running home. Starting the night in such a way had become a habit for her in recent weeks as she explored her _wild side_ , something she’d been shamed for numerous times by all the people she used to think cared about what made her happy. Her biggest support since she decided to _find herself_ or whatever had been a woman she thought hated her. Pam was the last person Jess ever thought she’d be able to call a friend but in the last few months she’d been like a mentor of sorts. But If she was honest with herself, the redhead knew it went back much further than that. The older vamp had been watching over her, albeit reluctantly, since her making and had taught her even more about being a vampire than Bill had, and just as he had become like a father to her, Pamela was like a snarky older sister. 

One she wasn't expecting to see tangled in her makers embrace, looking more peaceful than she’d ever seen with her head rested against his chest. The King’s young progeny had come to check in on him before heading to her own room, as had become a normal part of her routine since moving back in. Though there was nothing normal or routine about finding him sleeping with his arm wrapped possessively around her blonde friends shoulders.

Her eyes were comically wide as the image of Bill and Pam lying naked together was seared into her mind forever. Closing the door as quietly as possible she backed away carefully as she tried to process what this meant and how she felt about it. 

Unfortunately she wasn't so quiet in closing her own door. 

Instantly springing apart ready to face whatever had awoken them, relaxing when they heard the familiar sounds of unbearable pop music fill the silence and deduced the intruder was none other than Cheeto head. It took the once enemies a moment to even process how they’d been positioned when they woke up, if vampires blushed they both would’ve been red as hell when it finally dawned on them. 

“I didn’t take you for a rule breaker, Compton” she snarked weakly, if only to throw off suspicion that she hadn’t actually minded waking up in his arms as much as she thought she would. Contrary to popular belief, Pam didn't wake up the stone cold bitch everyone knew and some found a way to love. It usually took her a minute or two to put her armour in place, and for those first few moments after waking, the blonde had the potential to be almost..sentimental. Or as close to that as Pam could be. 

“What makes you so certain it was me who broke your rule?” he teased in return, to which Pam responded with a feigned expression of disgust “Trust me. _Even unconscious,_ I’d know better.”

Seeing through her act for what it was, Bill merely chuckled “Whatever you say, Pamela.” 

Not liking his knowing smirk or the fact that he seemed to be able to read her with ease the blonde got dressed in vamp speed, giving little thought to her missing bra. “I gotta split.” She announced, putting her heels on before fixing her hair a little in the mirror by the door. “If I’m gone much longer some incompetent will probably fucking burn down my bar trying to pour a shot” Pam offered with a slight smirk, though she didn't know why she felt the need to explain herself.

“Duty calls.” He replied with a smirk of his own, though if she didn't know any better she’d have thought he was disappointed to see her go. “Well you’d know a little about that wouldn't you, _your majesty_.” She replied, unable to resist a final jab before speeding off 

“You’re welcome here any time, Pamela!” He called after her loud enough that Jessica overheard even with her music blasting. _This day was feeling more and more like she’d stepped into the twilight zone._

Walking into Fangtasia a few hours later than she usually would, Pam was pleased to find the place was busy. Even more so to see that Eric looked frazzled, though she didn't bother sparing him a glance as she made her way over to her desk, set on doing the recites.

 “Where the fuck have you been?!” The former viking growled as he sped from his throne into the office, slamming the door behind him as he invaded her personal space. “You noticed? Impressive”  She replied disinterested, not even batting an eyelash at his obvious anger. After all getting a reaction out of him had been the plan all along, if she let on to him that that was the reason behind her behaviour, all would be for not. No, she would keep this going for as long as she could, weeks, months maybe, giving him as little information as possible until all he could think about was what the fuck she was doing when she wasn't was with him. Until she was once again the object of his obsessions, and all was how it should be. Then they could leave Sookie and Bill and all the other morons behind them forever. 

“Cut the crap, Pam. I don’t have time for your bullshit.” _Which was exactly the problem._ He used to have all the time in the world for his progeny and now even a few moments was too much for him. “You’re supposed to be here making sure things run smoothly. It’s not like I’m asking a lot of you.” He went on irritably, marching around to the desk and waving a messy stack of recites in her face to emphasis his point.

“Well I’m here now” She replied with an eye roll, her arms crossed over her chest as she waited rather patiently to finish his rant and fuck off. “Where did you go to ground?” He demanded after a moment, frustrated with her distant attitude, having become used to her attempts to latch onto any scrap of attention he gave her in the last year or so. The return of her cool demeanour was throwing him off a little.

“In the home of the very _hospitable_ brunette I was with last night” Pam replied vaguely with a slight shrug and her trademark sultry smirk. 

“Ahh, Är hon söt?” He grinned, a mischievous glint in his eye as he walked towards her, having softened considerably.

“Har du någonsin känt mig att ta en älskare som inte var ?” She replied, raising a perfectly sculpted eyebrow, pleased to see his playful side returned even for a short while.

Shaking his head at her antics, he chuckled slightly before taking her face in his hands and kissing her forehead softly. “Get to work.” The tall blond demanded, this time softer before making his way back to his throne.

It was much later that night that Pam’s relatively decent mood brought on by great sex with Bill and what had been her first decent conversation with Eric - _If you could really call it that_ \- in over a week, was beginning to wear off. The result of a few idiot fang bangers who dared touch her as she made her rounds, when suddenly her phone lit up with a text.

**‘Fangtasia didn’t burn to the ground in your absence, I assume?’**

Pam breathed out a single chuckle as she looked at the unfamiliar number, though it didn't take a genius to figure out the sender. Her fingers moving at twice the speed of a humans, she typed out her reply in a few seconds, pausing a moment before hitting send.

**’I don’t remember giving you my phone number’**

Smiling at her fast reply, he opened the message eagerly as he leaned back at his desk. With an amused smirk he chastised himself for expecting anything less than the snark he received. 

**’You didn’t. But as King, it wasn’t hard to obtain’**  

The blonde rolled her eyes at his reply. She could practically feel the smugness radiating through her phone to the point where it was almost palpable in the air. _Cocky bastard,_ she thought to herself in amusement. 

**’Abusing your power, _my King?_ How very _gentlemanly_ of you’**

If he didn't know she was joking, he would've been offended. Though he had to admit, having his assistant track down her contact information wasn't the most ethical move. But he had justified it to himself enough not to let it bother him.

**‘It’s not an abuse if my intentions are pure.’**

She actually laughed out loud at that one, claiming pure intentions? Really? As far as she could tell so far the only thing pure about it was his desperation. Pouring drinks with one hand, she used the other to type a quick response before putting her phone back in her pocket. 

**‘Is that so, your Majesty?’**  

He could picture her little smirk perfectly as he read it. A smirk that, much like her plump lips, her crystal blue eyes he was beginning to grow rather fond of. Before their recent encounter he’d never really given her much thought, but now that he had, he couldn't deny she was quite beautiful. Pam had an elegance about her, even when she was swearing like a sailor, _which to be fair was the majority of the time,_ that he couldn't help but be drawn in by. So, in the same way he justified it to himself, he justified his actions to her, though he knew the blonde could care less.

**‘Indeed it is, Ms de Beaufort. I had to know if I should be expecting a homicidal Eric Northman bursting through my doors at any moment so I could warn my guard staff’**  

Rolling her eyes for what felt like the hundredth time that night, she shook her head at his excuse, ignoring some idiot fang bangers request for a rum and coke as she replied.

**‘You can tell your blood bag army to relax. You’re safe from the vikings wrath - for now at least.’**

_Huh._ He had thought Eric’s reaction would've been the talk of the town, he’d even given most of his human staff the night off in preparation. He couldn't have stopped caring that much. Unless - 

**‘You didn’t tell him?’**

_Observant._ She mused silently.

**‘I told him I was with a brunette.’**

A fine description he supposed, though part of him hoped there had been a few more adjectives utilised that she was leaving out now.

**’..and?’**

**‘He assumed you were a woman.’**

At this Bill was genuinely confused. _Wasn't telling Eric the entire point of sleeping with him?_ Was that not what she wanted? Perhaps there was more to it than he was aware.

**‘You didn’t think to correct him?’**

Honestly, sometimes she wondered if he had even half a brain. Did he think she was going to walk in and announce what they did? Fuck no. For one, he probably wouldn't believe her and two his reaction wouldn't be half as extreme as if he found out by himself and thought she’d been hiding it from him because it meant something to her. 

**‘He’ll figure it out eventually.’**

_So she was playing a long game then._ Bill realised, finally starting to figure out where she was going with this plan of hers. Suppressing a smile as another realisation hit him, he responded once more.

**‘Eventually? May I deduce then that last night was not the end of our relationship?’**  

Panicking for a second, her response came through within moments of his. Pam didn't want him thinking more of the situation than what it was. They were..fuck buddies at best, they weren't - nor would they ever be any more than that. She didn't think Bill wanted her that way anyway, but he did like to think himself a gentleman and she didn't want him getting any ideas about _courting, doing right by her_ or any of that other crap he’d clung to like a vice from the principles he’d believed as a human. 

**‘This isn’t a relationship. We’re not dating.’**

Bill took a while to text back after that. Letting her response sit with him for a while. Trying to understand the disappointment he felt. He had only been teasing but her flat out rejection of the idea had left him with a strange feeling he didn't much like. Still, he told himself to take what he could get. If all she wanted was sex, well like she’d said, _he was getting the better end of the deal_ and he wasn't going to complain.

**‘Understood. Can I call on you tomorrow night?’**  

A relieved sigh left her lips as she smirked down at her phone, wondering if the slightly older vamp was ever going to realise they were in the 21st century.

**‘You can expect me at your hillbilly castle some time after 10, your majesty.’**

Laughing at her ever entertaining wit, Bill decided to tease her in return, as was quickly becoming a habit between them.

**‘It’s a date.’**

_Är hon söt? — Is she pretty?_

_Har du någonsin känt mig att ta en älskare som inte var ? — Have you ever known me to take a lover that wasn’t?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know if you noticed before but I forgot to mention last chapter - I fucked with Jessica’s time line a bit so in this she dumped Hoyt like lets say two months before all this started going down. Timeline wise their may be a few more differences like that I hope you don't mind - also I’m pretty sure I'm going to include the Marnie arch so buckle your seat-belts for that shitshow lmao btw: Do you want to see much of the Jessica/Pam friendship or do you prefer I focus more on her and Bill and soon Sookie and Eric ? Please review and let me know!


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So you could probably tell but I completely forgot about this story but decide to pick it up again lol hopefully there are still some of the original readers left. Thank you to those who reviewed, I appreciate hearing your thoughts it helps me shape future chapters. 
> 
> This chapter is still almost entirely Bill/Pam. I’ll bring everyone else in probably in the next chapter but just so you know there will never be a whole lot of Sookie in this story just because I'm not a fan and writing her, I know I put her in the characters mentioned for this and she is essential to the plot but the three main focus points are Pam,Bill and Eric. Second after them is Jessica and Sookie, meaning they're less central and wont be in every chapter but are important to the plot. also srry but if I didn't skip ahead I would've done 10 chptrs before I even got to Sookie getting back. if you're interested though I’m more than happy to do a short side story of what happened in those two months and the two of them sneaking around etc so if thats something you’d like to see let me know!

They’d been playing this game for weeks now. Just over two months in fact. More often then not, how it worked was Pam would make her way over to his mansion in Bon Temps on the nights she wasn't working, _which admittedly had been a lot more often since she’d started up this secret fling with none other than the King of Luisiana._ Her frequent visits weren't as enjoyable for Jessica as they were for Bill though. The bashful baby vamp had yet to work up the courage to tell either of them she knew what they were doing yet. _Though that was probably an overstatement of her knowledge._ She knew they were doing _something_ she just didn't know _what_ exactly. But whatever they were currently listing as their relationship status, it had her out of the house just about every night her blonde friend showed up. Avoiding the issue completely like any self-respecting christian girl would.  

Though his majesty had graced her home with his presence once or twice as well. Though he never stayed too long, as Pamela’s house was of course, Eric Northman’s house as well and neither wanted to tempt fate so recklessly, knowing that he could walk in at any given moment. 

When Pam had thought up this whole charade she’d never planned on being with him this often. It was only supposed to happen a few times before she _intentionally_ got clumsy enough for Eric to figure out what had her so distant, but much to her surprise, the blonde found she quite enjoyed Bill’s company. When he wasn't constantly brooding over the fact that his very existence was some sort of _abomination against God_ and crying over what she saw as the best thing that had ever happened to her, or completely consumed with love for his blonde country twat, he was actually pleasant company.

If they were honest, neither could really believe how easily they’d come to get along. Pam was the polar opposite of any woman Bill had ever imagined himself with. Usually his type looked a lot like Sookie Stackhouse or even his wife, Caroline. Sweet and kind, with an inherit and inextinguishable innocence written all over their face. He’d always been a simple man with very plain tastes, _a proper gentleman who dreamt of the perfect lady to walk by his side._ All things that was not, _nor had she ever pretended to be._ There was no denying the blonde was different from anything he’d ever wanted, but she was different in the sort of way that made him consider whether he’d spent a century wanting the wrong things.

Pamela was worldly and intelligent beyond even her hundred or so years, and she had this effortless and unfailing wit that always amused him, even against his better judgement. The blonde had this way about her that made him forget the part of himself that insisted upon constant composure and allowed him to relax almost completely, if only in her presence. They had this sync between them that was hard to come by and though she never fully let go of her uncaring demeanour, he knew on some level she felt it too. The more time they spent together, the better he was getting at reading the insignificant displays of emotion she’d allow herself to show before her mask fell back in place, and he was learning that despite what she wanted others to believe, the younger vampire was far from cold hearted. In fact he would argue she was in touch with more of her humanity than even Eric gave her credit for. It was just that her compassion was limited to a very special few.

She was also understanding in a way that only someone that had gone through hell could be. He felt he could tell her anything about the horrors of his life and she would understand his pain without needing any sort of explanation, like the few others he’d chosen to share his past with had. Because there was pain in her eyes, buried deep but still visible to those who cared to look, that he recognised from the mirror and convinced him they had more in common than they knew. Which, for reasons he had no logical explanation for it made him want to protect her. _Though he knew well enough not to voice such feelings, lest she stake him where he stood_. Pam was no damsel, no wallflower, she took care of herself and she needed no man to help her —- a trait he loved and admired about her. _More than he would ever admit to anyone._

They were lying dead together for the day when it happened. Bill jolted awake, unintentionally taking her with him as he sat up in bed.

“What is it, what’s wrong?” Pam questioned sleepily turning into his shoulder as her heavy eyelids called her back to death, her body knowing it was much to early to be awake.

“It’s..Sookie.” He replied in bewilderment, his eyes wide, as if staring at something up ahead but his search was an internal one as he tried to sift through their bond for information about what was happening.

“Sookie?!” Pam shot up, now wide awake as she looked up at him in confusion.

“I can feel her. For the first time in over a year, I can feel her —- she’s home.” he smiled. Though as he looked into her eyes, they both shared a moment of dread. As much as he was overjoyed for the return of his beloved, this meant the beginning of the end for them and it was nothing if not bittersweet. 

Pam though, more of a soldier than he as Bill often thought, pushed on as if entirely unaffected, even offering a smile of her on, if only for his benefit. “Well, what time is it, you should go.” The blonde encouraged.

“The sun won’t be down for a few hours yet.” He responded, checking his watch on the bedside table. 

A tension rose between them as neither knew the appropriate thing to say or do next _. Though there was little about anything between them that one would consider_ ** _appropriate._** Pam was opening her mouth, about to flounder for something to say to rid the awkward air that had fallen over the room when slowly bill lay down again, pulling her back to his chest and kissing her hair lightly in a silent declaration that they should go back to sleep. It was a long while before either did though. Both lying awake in each others arms, saying nothing. _Basking in what would likely be their last day together._

The King was gone almost as soon as the sun went down, so desperate to see his beloved and confirm with his own eyes that she was truly home, he made it to Sookie’s house in record time but it seemed he was still late to the party. Sheriff Bellefleur and Deputy Stackhouse, with the advantage of being able to walk in the sun having beaten him to it. Though the minute his eyes landed on her they became of little concern to him. All he could see was the blonde that’d left him broken hearted a year before and much to his delight, Northman had not yet presented himself, _though he knew it wouldn't be long now before he made himself known_ , there was a chance he and Sookie could have a few moments to talk alone and possibly work things out before he got there. 

Pam awoke not long after her lover, _not surprised to find herself alone in his bed_ , something she had surprisingly mixed feelings about. Though she reasoned with herself that they were more about Sookie than Bill. It wasn't that he’d left to go after another woman, honestly she could care less about that. This thing they had was always temporary after all and whilst, though she’d never admit it, she’d grown fond of the other vampire —- _perhaps even to the point of caring_ , she didn't _love_ him. At best they were friends, but for Pam at least, it ended there. Having already given her heart to another long ago. But the fact that he’d left for the waitress had her gut coiling with rage. Pam had never been the jealous type, but ever since her makers obsession with that faery twat had taken over his ability to behave like the Eric Northman she’d live and die for, _there was little more she loathed than being ignored in favour of the younger blonde._

Not wanting to overstay her welcome or be around to witness what was sure to be a sickly sweet reunion, she made her move to leave almost immediately after waking, _though not before reapplying her face and making herself presentable at her usual leisurely pace,_ refusing to rush for the little girl that had become such a thorn in her side. It was close to an hour later before she was ready, but as she looked back at herself in the mirror Pam declared every minute well worth it. Walking out past the guards with all the confidence in the world, the blonde made her way back to her Shreveport mansion, deciding 8 hours dealing with the bottom feeders that normally frequented Fangstasia was more effort than she was willing to give.

_Unsurprisingly,_ things with Sookie hadn't gone to plan. Apparently, _for her at least_ , their break up and his betrayal was still a very open wound, though the King didn't even want to try and comprehend how that was possible or what sort of realm she must have been in to make it so at this point. Whatever the hell had happened over there, one thing that was for sure was that the blonde didn't want a bar of him. Though as much as that fact should've devastated him and consumed his thoughts for days to come, as he made his way home Bill couldn't stop his mind from wandering to another leggy blonde.  

The King found he had conflicted emotions about his split attentions, trying hard to push the latter from his mind even as he hoped she’d still be upstairs sleeping when he walked in. No such luck though, as Pam was never one to stick around.

Bill didn't realise until he was met with her absence, however, just how much he wished she had been their to greet him and though he fought the impulse for a while as a point of pride and also guilt for having left her without a word, _though he knew she wouldn't hold it against him_ , it wasn't long before he went after her. First going to Fangtasia and covering himself by asking Ginger about Eric’s whereabouts beforehand, less than impressed to hear that he’d recently left for Bon Temps. For a moment there, he almost turned around and headed back to Sookie’s intent on protecting her from his advances, but knowing she hated him too much at the moment to let him do anything of the sort, he headed to the Northman / de Beaufort residence instead.

“No.” Pam said immediately as she opened the door, giving him no chance to respond as she expanded, placing a hand on her hip as she looked upon him with narrowed eyes. His presence could only mean one thing and the blonde felt an anger boil in her chest at the assumption. “I am consolation prize to no one, **_least_** _of all being Sookie Fucking Stackhouse_. So if you think you’re going to come here and fuck me because buck tooth barbie turned you down, you can take your hard on and find some place else to stick it.” She finished, using hand gestures to punctuate the point.

Bill chuckled and rose his hands in surrender as he stepped past her into the house. She didn't stop him, but the King could tell his response had done nothing to sooth her irritation. His suspicions confirmed when she spoke again.

“So, what? You expect me to believe she took you back and then you decided to show up at my door?” The blonde drawled with her usual sarcastic indifference.

“ _No._ ” Bill admitted as he headed into the parlour, turning to make sure she was following. “You were right about Sookie not wishing to see me, _but wrong about my intention in coming here._ ” He clarified, taking a seat on one of the leather couches.

_“_ ** _Mhmm._** _”_ Pam replied unimpressed as she sat across from him.

Sighing heavily at her unchanging demeanour he hoped he hadn't been wrong in coming. Honestly he just wanted to think about anything other than Sookie for a few hours and Pam was the only person he knew that could take his mind off her. “Have we not become friends in these last months?” He tried. “You said so yourself only days ago.” 

“ _What’s your point?_ ” The blonde shot back with a raised eyebrow. 

“My point, Ms de Beaufort, is —- is it so wrong for a friend to show up at friends house after some sort of tragic heartbreak?” He replied, unable to keep the smirk from his face.

“..if you’re looking for someone to lick your wounds you can _fuck right off_. ” Pam responded after a moment with her usual _overwhelming sensitivity_. “But if you're here to sit around talking about what a cunt your little small town waitress is, you've come to the right place.” The blonde added with a shit-eating grin.

Try as he might, the King could do nothing to stifle a laugh at the blonde’s crassness and gleeful expression. “I had hoped we could avoid mentioning her at all, actually.” he replied as he regained his composure. 

“Well what the fuck else is there to talk about?” She asked, brows furrowing in confusion. ‘ _What the fuck does he want from me?_ ’ She thought, looking him over carefully.

“Well with almost 300 years of experiences between us,” He reminded with his trademark charm. “I’m sure we can find _something_.” He smiled, getting up and retrieving a couple of tru bloods from the bar behind them. Pam didn't usually drink it and there were far better choices behind the bar but with Bill being his _dudley-do-right_ self preferred it to actual blood and the blonde didn't mind indulging him every so often, even though they both knew she’d never drink that crap if he wasn't around. 

“ _Alright_ , I’m game.” Pam agreed as he handed her one, looking over it with only slight distain as her mind started running wild with possibilities for this little pastime. 

“Perfect.” He grinned, reclaiming his seat, happy both to have her attention and to see her mood having improved at the suggestion. “Shall we start at the beginning then?” 

“Sounds as good a place as any.” The younger vamp shrugged before her smirk turned wicked. 

“You first, Compton. _Tell me about your making_.”

With a curt nod and a deep sigh, the King slid a little further into his chair as he prepared to oblige her, though the memory was hardly a fond one. “I was on my way home from war. I would've arrived home within the week had I not stopped; but I was starving and without water, travelling on foot…" Pausing a moment as he lifted his drink to his lips, Bill tried to repress the image of his makers hateful face.

"I saw a house in the middle of nowhere, the first I’d seen in miles. In hindsight I suppose I should've considered the reasoning for such a thing but I was so crazed by my hunger and fatigue I didn't care." He went on, his smile wistful. "Lorena was in the house, posing as the widow of a soldier. She seemed kind at first, she made me the first decent meal I’d had in a year. _Though I admit I didn't eat much of it before she started her advances_." 

"She claimed she wanted me to sleep with her but it was my refusal that seemed to spark her obsession with me. I told her I just wanted to go home to my wife, that she was beautiful but I was uninterested.” Pam listened intently as the story was told, making no effort to hide her interest. She’d met a few women like Lorena in her life, but none quite as desperate in her eyes.

"I thanked her for her hospitality and made to leave. Lorena had other plans however. It seemed she’d been searching for a _gentleman_ like me for a long while. The next thing I knew I was waking up in the the ground, a ready made monster.”

“Bitch sounds like a fanged up Annie Wilkes.” The blonde mused, hoping create a lighter atmosphere. Misery was one of the films she’d resentfully watched when fangtasia was still a video store and one of the very few she’d actually liked.

The King chuckled at the reference, surprised that for once he’d actually understood it. “To say the least.” 

 “And now it is your turn, I believe.”

Rolling her eyes and feigning annoyance as she tried to hide her smile Pam complied. Looking upon the story of her rebirth with a lot more fondness than he held for his.

“It happened the first night we met." She informed, enjoying the surprise and curiosity she saw on the others face. "I had met Eric a few nights earlier. Always the sucker for a damsel in distress he'd saved me from some drunken moron that grabbed me on the street. Our interaction then was short but it must've been enough to peek his interest, because a few days later he walked through my doors."  

"I offered him any girl he wanted as a thank you but back then he only had eyes for me." She explained, a glimmer of pride visible in her eyes.

"So, ever the business woman, I struck a deal with him. He would get rid of the vampires that were draining all my girls and he could have me. " She continued, looking at him pointedly as his involvement in her making was revealed. Again, the King’s eyebrows were raised incredulously as he interrupted.

"So, he got rid of Lorena and I—-“

"And I held up my end of the bargain.” She finished for him, her smirk widening at the look on his face. He almost seemed angry about Mr Northman’s deplorable behaviour. “But then I started to think about the sad little story my life was about to be, some old whore destined to die of syphilis or something equally as glamorous and then lying beside me was this magical alternative."

"That was it? You just asked and Eric agreed?"

"Of course not, we're talking about Eric fucking Northman.” Pamela deadpanned. "He didn't like the idea at first, but after I gave him a little push, he couldn't refuse.”

"A push?” Bill questioned, though he wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to know what that push involved. 

_"I slit my wrists open.”_

_"I don't know why I expected anything less.”_


	4. 4

“ So you just walked in and told her she was yours? _Gee,_ I wonder why that didn’t work. ” A perfect eye roll accompanied the words as she read between the lines of her maker’s complaint. _Honestly,_ you’d think he’d learn to change tactics.

As far as she was concerned, there wasn’t a thing wrong with bein’ _his_ but the Stackhouse girl, despite how long she’d been around, didn’t understand their world and the idea of bein’ _owned_ by anyone was less than appealing. 

“ I didn’t ask for your thoughts on the matter, Pam. ” Eric sniped in return, not bothering to look up at her as he continued to brood at his desk.

 _“ You didn’t ask for Sookie’s either. ”_ She threw over her shoulder on the way out. _Over this shit_ was an understatement to say the least. 

 

                                                                                                                 … 

 

As the day rolled over and gave way to yet another night working at Fangtasia, Pam had taken up residence in Eric’s throne that was becoming more and more hers as his appearances became less and less frequent when her phone lit up.

**_‘ May I request your presence ? ’_ **

“ You gotta be fucken kiddin’ me. ”  She spoke under her breath. If he didn’t get the hint last night he had to be dumber than a box of rocks. There was no way she was sleeping with him again with Sookie back in the picture — not gonna happen. Whatever they were doin was done.

**_‘ On a strictly platonic matter, I assure. ’_ **

_Hm, fine._ The blonde thought, though still unimpressed.

**_‘ When? ’_ **

**_‘ Now, if you are able. ’_ **

Rolling her eyes at the request, Pam found herself complying anyway, taking off at vamp speed for his place. _It was gearin up to be a pretty fucken borin’ night of fang bangers and losers anyway._

“ What’d’you want, Compton. ” The blonde drawled as she leant an against the doorframe leading to his office. 

Smirking at her from his desk, Bill would admit he wasn’t entirely sure whether she was playing her usual game or if she were in some way sore at him. Though he couldn’t imagine why, he’d only seen her last night and they’d had a good time talking together before he’d returned home, or so he’d thought. “ Well, I had _hoped_ we would still maintain the friendship that had grown between us — ” 

“ _Yeah, yeah,_ spit it out. ” Pam interrupted, impatient to know the reason he’d called so she knew whether or not she was about to tell him to fuck off. 

“ Sookie will soon discover it was Eric who purchased her home. ” 

 _“ And. ”_ She replied with a level of indifference others _strived_ for. 

“ Well, I was hoping you might — ” He was trying for his usual polite charm hoping he could draw out a favour but he was interrupted before even voicing the request. 

“ If you think I can get him to give it up you _clearly_ have not been paying attention. ” 

“ Not without _cause_ perhaps, but now that it has come to an end I thought learning of our recent _tryst_ may turn his head as you hoped."

It wasn’t without logic. That _was_ the reason she’d started this in the first place but honestly with Sookie’s unexpected return her original plans for Eric discovering what was going on had been thrown in the air and she wasn’t entirely sure yet how to do it in a way that’d completely take his mind off princess faery twat. “ …I haven’t figured out how to drop the bomb with _maximum impact_ yet. ” 

Nodding in understanding of her plight, he offered what seemed a reasonable solution, though one that he may take great personal pleasure in. “ Perhaps we can discuss it and come up with.. some sort of ruse that would work.”

“ A ruse? ” She asked flatly. 

“ Yes. Perhaps were he to _walk in and —_ ” 

Pam cut him off with a roll of her eyes. “ Oh, you would _love_ that wouldn’t you. ” She replied, not bothering to cover her amusement. For a supposed gentleman, His Majesty really could be just as much of a devious pig as the next guy. 

“ And you wouldn’t after all he’s put you through? ”

A curt sigh was her only response. In truth, she wasn’t entirely sure if she would. Sure sleeping with Bill was to get under his skin but having him walk in on it might be a little much even for her taste. 

Before either of them could say any more on the matter, Bill stood at attention, sensing something she obviously couldn’t, or at least noticing something she wasn’t aware needed noticing. 

“ What? ” 

“ _Sookie_. ” Fuck, she hated how he said her name. It was an unbelievably stupid name to begin with and his whole dramatic _Mr. Darcy_ dark brooding bullshit only made it sound _more_ ridiculous if that were possible. 

She’d been about to say something to that effect when he leaned over to tell the ever incompetent guards out front to let her pass over the intercom. As he sat back at his desk with that anxious Sookie-struck look on his face, Pam found she finally had an idea that could work. Devilish smirk adorning her features she timed it out for how long it’d take tinker bell’s scrawny human legs to walk in before launching forward at vamp speed, seating herself in his lap the same way she had that first night before her lips latched onto his. 

“ Pam?! ” Bill questioned, confusion written all over his dark features.

“ You wanted a ruse didn’t you? ” She chuckled darkly as her lips moved to cover his once again. This was not what he had in mind when he suggested intentionally getting caught but he made no attempt to stop her kissing him.

 _“Oh my god.”_ Sookie gasped as she walked in to see Pam all but grinding into Bill with her tongue down his throat. Shocked didn’t even begin to describe it. She’d had people warn her things had changed but _this_ was the fucking twilight zone. _Bill was King? and with Pam?_ She needed to sit down. 

He felt her smirk into his mouth and had to stop himself from shaking his head as she pulled herself off of him with a grace few could manage whilst dismounting someone’s lap. _Incorrigible._

Wiping under her bottom lip to fix her makeup, Pam was the picture of a woman un-phased as she through a glance at Sookie over her shoulder. Thoroughly enjoying every moment, Bill was sure.

“ Hey, fairy princess. ” She greeted, her voice almost _sickly sweet_ as she walked toward her and the door. “ Welcome back, I guess — _he’s all yours_. ” Pam whispered to the younger blonde,  resting a condescending hand on her shoulder before being on her way without waiting for a response. 

Speeding back to Fangtasia overly satisfied with herself, she was surprised to find that Eric had actually turned up to the place. _Stars must be aligned for this shit,_ she thought briefly before ignoring him in favour of a magazine as she took her place in the office out back.

“ Where have you been? ” Eric asked, visibly irritated. His assumption that she be chained to this bar while he ignores it and her six days out of a week never failed to piss her the fuck off but she kept up a show of cool indifference. 

“ Over at King Bill’s backwater palace, but with _Ms Super Snatch_ showing up to make up for lost time I figured it best to — ” 

Eric had sped off before she’d even finished her reason and she couldn’t help but smirk quirking her lips. It seemed even her Viking god was not immune to a little basic manipulation every now and again. Turning her attention back to the magazine in her grasp, she sat in wait for the inevitable 

_“ Pam?! Really? ” He heard Sookie whine as he entered Bill’s home._

“What about Pam?”  Eric asked as he swept into the room. Really he’d been curious what her business here was when she told him but when he heard what sounded like Sookie and Bill making up he didn’t want to ask and risk giving Compton more time to win her back.

Sighing, His Majesty made a note to his guards over their incompetence. Honestly, nearly shooting a human for standing on the lawn but a vampire he openly despised gets in without trouble. 

“ Nothin’ really I just found her sittin’ in Bill’s lap is all. ” Sookie replied irritably, still wishing she could scrub the sight from her memory. “You’d think you’d have mentioned that one if while you were trying to get me to stay away from him.”

 _“ Sookie.. ”_ Bill warned vaguely, attempting to alert her to the fact Eric was unaware of their relations. Regretting deeply his use of the word ruse. Only Pam could abandon him to a situation that was entirely _her_ creation. 

Eric looked between them for a moment with a furrowed brow before laughing loudly. “ What a peculiar joke. Must be _Faery Sookie’s_ sense of humour. ” He mused, referring again to his theory that there were two Sookie Stackhouse’s both with significantly different traits. 

Looking back at Bill in confusion, Sookie found him bowing his head silently and not for the first time she wished she could get inside his head. _What on earth was goin’ on here?_

“ I’m _not_ joking I _saw_ it with my own two eyes. ”

“ Sookie, I will always do my best to protect you, but if Pamela ever hears that _slander_ I may not be able to stop her finding a way to kill you. ” Outwardly he still seemed rather amused but to the trained eye, his jaw was tight and his fists were clenched. There was nothing about this he found overly funny.

“ Eric, why on earth would I make that up? It’s so crazy the _thought_ wouldn’t’ve even entered my mind if I hadn’t just born witness to it. ”

Denial finally starting to wear thin, Eric looked to Bill ready for him to deny the accusation and put an end to the boiling rage thatw as growing within him. But he was met with silence and the sight of what he knew to be Pam’s shade of lipstick smudged against Compton’s lips.

_“ No. "_

_“ Er — “_

Bill was up against the wall with a hand around his throat in under a second, as Eric growled into his ear. “ You were not with Pam. ” He stated firmly as if were he to say it with enough conviction he could erase was quickly becoming an undeniable reality. Were he not dead his blood would be red hot pumping through his veins. Pam was his and the idea that his rival for Sookie has somehow gotten past him and stolen what was already his whilst they competed for her was unacceptable. Completely unacceptable. 

His Majesty made no move to speak nor to try and release himself, he simply held Eric’s eyes with a defiant satisfaction. Glad to have repaid the favour finally after Eric had so relentlessly tried to usurp his claim over Sookie. 

“ Say it! ” Northman demanded. 

At this he was met with a slight smile as Bill leaned forward into the hand wrapped around his neck to whisper. “ _From this close I’m awfully surprised you can’t smell her on me_. ” 

Eric’s fangs shot out, his grip tightening and were his self control not what it was he’d have ripped his head off right then and there and mounted it on a stick. Because in truth, though he tried to ignore it, he could smell her. 

He could hear Sookie trying to calm the situation faintly in the background but he paid her no mind as his hand clamped down enough that something in Bill’s neck broke with a crack that filled the room.

“ What do you have on her? She would _never_ lie with you willingly. ” Eric growled, his voice dangerously low. 

“I assure you, Sheriff, she came here of her own accord.” He struggled to reply, his ability to speak inhibited as his arms hung limp at his sides. “Now you may want to discuss any issue you may have with your progeny before you do something foolish like murder a Vampire Monarch. The Authority will not take kindly to it, especially not when you give them your reason.”

Barely contained anger looked back at him and it was only because Sookie’s screaming had drawn the attention of the guards sporting wooden bullets that Eric relented and sped off back to Fangtasia.

 _“ EXPLAIN YOURSELF! ”_ Eric boomed as he entered, throwing the desk she sat at against a wall. 

“ What do you wanna know. ” Pam replied, unconcerned as she continued to buff out her nails as if they were having a general conversation about the weather, ignoring the debris in front of her.

 _“ WHY?! ”_ Eric demanded. 

 _“ Why what? ”_ She asked, looking up at him with a bored expression. She knew she probably shouldn’t tease him so but.. _he deserved it for being such a prick_ , and it was _oh so much fun._ “ Why is the sky so blue? Why does ginger insist on keeping that god awful haircu— ”

_“ BILL COMPTON. ”_

“ Yeah. ”

“ You _slept_ with him. ”

“ Have been for months, _or didn’t you notice?_ ” She smiled sweetly, before standing and walking passed him toward the bar. 

“ _MONTHS?_ ” He yelled, grabbing her arm hard. “ You’ve been going behind my back for _months?_ ” Her maker was positively seething and she had to focus on actively blocking their bond so he couldn’t sense how pleased she was over it. 

“ Actually I was doin it right in front of your face, you were just distracted.” The blonde replied calmly, making no move to escape his hold. 

“ Why. ” He demanded, his voice lowering considerably in volume though he still shook with anger and his grip on her tightened slightly, possessively. 

“ Don’t know. I always have liked a man _on a throne._ ” She smirked up at him.

“ This isn’t a joke. ” Eric snapped. 

“ You see me laughing? ” 

 _Enough of this._ This back and forth, foolish banter with no real explanations. The only one he could think that made any sense at all was she was trying to get his attention, _in which case she’d succeeded._ He wouldn’t let himself consider any other possible reason for the indiscretion. “ You will not see him again, I forbid it. ”

 _“ Forbid? ”_ She repeated, breathing out a chuckle. “ You may be _my maker_ Eric but who I fuck ? That’s _my_ choice.” 

“ _As your maker —_ ” 

“ You sure that’s how you wanna play this? ” Pam interrupted, warning in her eyes as they met his and it gave him pause. 

He’d never dared tell her who she could be with like that before and he knew her command over her body was important to her. Taking away her choice in that regard would be crossing a boundary that couldn’t be uncrossed. 

“I’m going to ground.” She said after their little stare down surpassed five minutes without reaction. She took his inaction as a retreat and removed his had from her arm. “We can talk this over later — _that is if you aren’t busy renovating._ ” She threw over her shoulder as she walked away knowing she’d won.

 

                                                                                                                           …

 

“ Sookie, I did it to _protect_ you. ” It was a rich excuse even to his own ears but he made an attempt at it anyway, after all it wasn’t entirely a lie.

“ _Protect me?_   You thought I was dead! ” The blonde was quick to remind. “ And besides that _how the hell_ is you sleeping with Pam _protecting me?_ What kinda fucked up vampire reasoning do you gotta use to come up with that solution. ” 

“I was doing it to divert Eric’s attention away from you— ” 

“ Save it!” She cut him off, entirely fed up with him and the rest of the vampires in this damn town. “I don’t wanna hear it, I don’t want anything to do with any of you.” Sookie shouted before storming out.

                                                                                                                             …

 

Calling Eric the next day had been a risk, Bill would admit but he was still King and as one of his Sheriff’s Eric still had duties he must fulfil. And if King Bill got some sick satisfaction out of being able to dole out the orders, well, so be it. 

However the call didn’t go exactly to plan. He hadn’t even been able to offer a greeting before he heard Eric’s loathing growl from the other line. “ If you **ever** go near her — if you ever even _say her name_ again, there’s **no one** , _not even The Authority_ , that will be able to save you from me.”  

And with that he was left with a dial tone.

                                                                                                                             …

 

It was _amusing_ to say the least that Sookie had come to talk to her after what she’d seen last night. Pam had been happily imagining little miss pixie blood off crying in a corner somewhere but no. Here she was, ever her annoying self asking for favours. _Typical._ Of course Pam made no attempt to even _pretend_ like she was willing to help. 

 _Trying to get Eric to sell her back that house? With the mood he was in now?_ No thank you. She’d get it back eventually. Maybe. But there was no way Pam was gonna intervene. They’d played this game before, she and Eric, but never quite on this level. Sleeping with Bill had been her play and it was now his turn to make one. Until he did? She wasn’t about to be caught dead seeking him out for a damn thing. Especially not _Miss Hick America._

Picking up her phone half expecting it to be Eric on the other end, Pam couldn’t help but laugh as the caller ID surprised her. 

“ Your Majesty. ”

“ _Ms de Beaufort._ How was your evening? ”

“ As to be expected. _Yours?_ ” She asked and Bill could hear the mischievous smirk he was certain she’d be sporting. 

“Well your _little display_ didn’t win me any favours where Sookie was concerned.” 

“ I figured when she showed up on my doorstep stead of yours you may not be on _the best_ of terms. ” Pam replied, absent even the feigned presence of guilt.

“ What did she want? ” 

“ For me to talk Eric into giving up her house. ”

_“ Oh? ”_

“ Not gonna happen. ” 

“ Well perhaps you’d be more willing to do me a favour. ”

“ No. ” Pam replied flatly.

“ You don't even know what it is yet. ” 

“ _I don’t care_ but fine, go on if you must. ” 

“I need you to take care of some witches for me, I had intended to send Eric but that phone call was not quite as civil as this one and since you are the reason, I thought perhaps— ” 

“ Shut up and send me the address. ” She replied before hanging up. _That man really could drag on._

“ Was that Bill? ” Jessica asked as she stood hesitantly at the entrance of what was Pam’s office. 

“ It was. ” The blonde drawled, a lazy smile adorning her features as she looked back at the baby vampire. It’d been a while since she’d seen her around and Pam was _reluctantly_ curious about where she’d been.

“ So are you guys.. are you _like …_ ” Jess uncomfortably tried to discern, not even able to say it out loud.

Pam looked at her with furrowed brows for a moment before she realised what the redhead was asking and she let out a barking laugh. “ _Fuck no._ Why, what have you heard? ” 

If she could blush right now she’d have been as red as her hair. Jessica couldn’t even look the older vamp in the eyes as she confessed. “ It’s not so much what I’ve heard as _what I saw_. ”

 _“ Oh? ”_ Pam replied, raising a perfectly sculpted eyebrow. 

“ You two, um, dead in each others arms. ” 

Her eyes went wide for a moment before the memory clicked to the abrupt wakeup call they’d had a couple months ago. “ That night you came home late. ” Jessica nodded uncomfortably and Pam gave a smirk in return.  “ _Well look at you keeping secrets._ I’m almost impressed. ”

Jessica couldn’t help but smile at that, Pam had become her vampire role model of sorts and impressing or _almost impressing_ her in any way was a source of great pride. It took a moment to realise she hadn’t actually gotten an explanation for what the hell was going on before she reluctantly tried again. _“…So?”_

Pam opened her mouth about to have a little fun with the girl in front of her, preparing to teach her a lesson in minding her own damn business with some truly graphic details when her phone lit up with the address to this moon goddess whatever and she decided to get this bullshit over with before they opened for the night, settling instead for a light jibe on her way out. 

_“Relax Cheeto, I have no intention of becomin’ your new step mommy.”_


	5. Chapter Five

Eric had gone to Sookie’s to brood as far from Pam as possible while he tried to figure out how this had happened. Pacing back and forth across the porch he spent half the night trying to pinpoint all the signs he missed, mulling over her possible intentions. He was hoping desperately her goal was just to spite him _but what if she had some sort of real feeling for Bill?_ The mere idea of it made his skin crawl unpleasantly, _surely_ if this was only to get his attention she’d have told him much earlier than this, _wouldn’t she?_ Why drag it out for months if it were only a ploy? 

_Months_. How had it been going on for so long without his notice? _Had he really been so out of touch?_ He tried reaching through their bond to discern her true feelings but found himself unsurprisingly blocked.

“ _If it helps any,_ Bill told me it didn’t mean anything.” Sookie chirped up, interrupting his thoughts. She still wasn’t at all pleased with him being there but his _ill-ease_ at the situation was starting to make her anxious too. 

“I’m sure he did.” Eric mused, barely acknowledging her. Of course, like some kind of cheating spouse the noble king would claim the woman he’d been bedding for months was no more to him than a bed warmer to save face with the waitress. _He’d expect nothing less._

“He also said he was doin’ it to protect me.” She announced, shifting her weight from one foot to another, _nervous,_ almost as if she wanted to gauge his reaction before she decided on the validity of the excuse. 

An eyebrow raised, this one actually peeked his interest. _“Oh? ”_ How had King Bill sold that one?

“Somethin’ about trying to divert your attention away from me, I don’know, I didn’t let him finish.”

An almost sympathetic smile tugged the corner of his mouth as he replied, “ _somehow I doubt you were all he was thinking about._ ” In fact, having the privilege of Pam’s company more times than he could count over the last hundred years, he could say with complete certainty, Sookie would have been _quite far_ from Bill’s mind while he was supposedly _protecting_ her.

It was that thought that had his smile growing almost imperceptibly as Sookie answered, not that he heard any of what she said — suddenly struck with an overwhelming feeling of fear and confusion, his brow furrowed for a moment before he realised. 

_“ Pam.”_

And with that he was gone so fast Sookie was surprised he didn’t leave a cartoon outline behind. “Just because y’all are vampires, does not mean ya gotta be _rude_."

 

...

 

Running as fast as thousand year old legs would carry him, Eric soon found himself on the side of the road looking at a very dishevelled progeny. She stood with bare feet, her hair a mess like he hadn’t seen it in.. _well,_ he couldn’t say he entirely recalled ever seeing Pamela’s hair in such a state. Her shirt was open, no longer held together by what was sure must’ve been one of her corsets that now lay ripped in half further down the road. 

When she feels him near she feels inexplicably calmer, and now with him standing in front of her she feels strangely safe and yet.. it’s still a question. 

_“Do we know each other?”_ There’s something so familiar about him but she can’t place his face. Not that it would matter, she has no idea who _she_ is either, or where.

Still shocked as he stood before her, Eric stepped closer protectively. Whatever was happening was clearly serious. Her clothes were strewn along the road and she didn’t recognise him, at least not consciously, not to mention the southern drawl she’d adopted since moving to Shreveport was absent from her words. It happened every so often when her emotions got the best of her — her true voice would make a reappearance. This was different somehow. She wasn’t emotional exactly she was just… _distant._

“I am your maker, Pamela” He answered gently, trying to gauge how best to react to what was apparently an amnesiac Pam. “Do you remember what happened to you?”

His only answer was a slight smile as she took a step toward him. She might not have any idea who she was but she knew she needn’t be afraid with him around. “ _Pamela.._ it’s pretty.” The blonde whispered distantly, trying to search her mind for something, anything. All she found was fog.

“It is.” Eric agreed, a light amusement in his tone, as he placed a hand on her waist cautiously. 

She leaned into his touch without having to think about it and he stepped forward again in response, leaving very little room between them. “I don’t remember it —   _I don't remember anything_.” Pam replied hopelessly.

“You’ve no idea where you came from?” He asked looking at the road behind her, trying to recall what in the town she’d passed through could have caused this. 

 “I.. I’m not sure. All I remember is walking, I'm not sure where I was headed.”

_“Home.”_ Eric answered, knowing well the direction she was walking without having to check.

“Is that where you were?” She asked innocently, looking up at him with crystal blue eyes. 

There was guilt settling in the pit of his belly in response. _It’s where he should’ve been._ At home with her trying to ask the necessary questions rather than pacing Sookie’s porch. Perhaps if he had she'd have been spared whatever this was.

“…It’s where I’m taking you.” He answered before lifting her into his arms bridal style and speeding off into the direction of their shared home with no resistance at all from the blonde in his arms. 

 

...

 

It’s both strange and comforting, she thinks. To have such a deep _trust_ in someone you don’t remember. To feel entirely safe in the arms of an unknown man flying toward an unknown destination he calls home. It’s not.. _familiarity_ she feels exactly but it is a knowing. A _knowing_ just from their brief conversation that she’d been held like this many times before. Something deep in her blood telling her this was where she was meant to be. 

Somewhere along the way, she’d rested her head against his broad chest as she waited patiently to see where they’d end up, arousing feelings of conflict in her maker. On one hand he found her acceptance rather endearing but in the same breath it just.. wasn’t _Pam_. Not the one he knew. Usually travelling anywhere without knowing the _exact_ destination in vivid detail would evoke all sorts of complaints from the blonde ranging from eye rolling and digging her heels in to all out whining. This willingness, though possibly the most desirable outcome was _unnerving._

Within ten minutes they were landed on their front porch, and Eric, with alarming grace opened the door whilst still holding her in his arms. 

A gasp leaves her lips as they walk into what could easily be called a mansion, the decor lavish, but tasteful. The colour scheme was rich with deep reds and touches of gold. The place gave off a very subtle Victorian vibe, without being cluttered or closed inward. The use of negative space making what she could see of it look even bigger than it was. 

_“It’s beautiful.”_ Pam whispered as he placed let her down, filled with awe as she took the place in.

“Of course, even with amnesia you admire your own work.” Eric replied in amusement.

Eyes wide with shock as she turned back to meet his, the blonde couldn’t stop the question, _“I did all this?”_

“Many a burly, underpaid man did this.” Eric informed more accurately, before leaning a little closer to whisper. _“But you delegated beautifully.”_ He smiled affectionately as he placed a kiss on her forehead. “And spent enough of my money to run over three bank cards.”

_“Oh.”_ Eyes wide once again, Pamela bowed her head in something akin to shame. “…I’m sorry.” 

Eric could’ve sworn he was having a stroke when the words left her mouth. His progeny _apologising_ for spending money? Whatever this was surely ran deep.

“It’s alright.” He assured, taking her hand as he moved to show her around the rest of the house. “I let you.” 

Feeling a relief knowing her spending wasn’t a source of anger for her maker, Pamela kept quiet for the most part as he ushered her around the house showing her every room until they reached hers, upstairs and the first to the left. 

This room was noticeably different from the others, displaying a very liberal use of the colour pink. It wasn’t tacky by any means but it was still a lot to take in. Pamela found herself smiling as she walked further into the room, the corners of Eric’s lips curving upward in turn. At least her tastes were still the same. 

“Do you sleep here too?” She asked after a moment.

“Sometimes.” He answered vaguely, a wistful smirk playing on his lips.

“Are we lovers?” Pamela asked with a smirk of her own.

He almost laughed at the eyebrow raise he was met with, but answered easily as he repressed a smile with only moderate success. _“Sometimes.”_

With a soft laugh of her own, the blonde lets the issue drop for now, more intrigued by the large double doors to the side of the room.

A second gasp escapes her as she opens the doors to see more clothes than she imagines most would ever see in their lifetime. 

“Your most prized possessions.” Eric announces as he walks over beside her and lifts a remote off the wall. “When we bought the house, you had them convert the two bedrooms next to yours into the largest wardrobe known to man.” 

Handing her the remote, he showed her slowly how it worked. “The clothes are organised first by era, then by mood — see.” He explained, turning the dial in the centre and causing the racks of clothes to shift until all her Fangtasia outfits came into view. Taking the remote, Pam gave it a click of her own and was met with a rack full of multi coloured sweatsuits. 

“And over here,” Eric, went on, settling in well to his role of tour guide as he took her by the hand and guided her to the right hand wall that was fitted floor to ceiling cabinets. “You have enough jewellery to make a Queen envious, more belts than you could ever possibly need and impressively large collection of scarves all neatly organised and my guess, _colour coded_.” 

Nodding along, Pam opened a few drawers to peak inside. God, it was going to take her a year just to look at all this stuff. 

“This is where you usually sleep.” Eric informed as he pushed a few racks out of the way to get to the middle of the room where a pink coffin almost identical to the one she kept at Fangtasia resided. “Surrounded by all your pretty things.” 

Pam couldn’t say yet, which she preferred — the oversized bed in the spacious room they’d just come from or the glamorous coffin in the centre of what could easily be the basis of a hundred different runway shows, but there was one more thing she should likely see before she decided.

“What’s behind door number three?” She asked, an easy smile on her face. Surprisingly calm for someone who had no idea who she was.

“Shoes.”

_“Shoes?”_

“Shoes.” He answered again with a smirk. 

“That’s it?” _Surely that couldn’t be the entire room, right?_

“Pamela, at this rate, we may need to knock out another wall to accomodate all your footwear.” 


	6. six

After getting Pam settled in and watching her try on about eighty different pairs of shoes, Eric decides to try and make a swift exit while she’s distracted.

_“Eric!”_

No such luck however. 

“You’re leaving me?” She asked, panicked by the thought as she walked down the stairs still looking just as much as a mess as when he’d found her, only now she was sporting a new pair of pink pumps. 

There was something in the way she said it that made his dead heart clench painfully. She didn’t remember their arguing but he wondered if it was this fear that lead her to Bill originally. 

_“Only for a little while, Älskling.”_ He promised, closing the distance between them to place a kiss against her forehead. “To find out what’s happened to you and then I shall return, you have my word.” 

“Can’t I go with you?” With the way she looked up at him, her big blue eyes pleading, he almost relented. _Almost._

“No. It’s not safe for you out there, Pamela. Not while you’re like this. If word was to get to the Authority about your current state, it could end badly for us. I need you to stay out of sight until I figure out how to move forward, understand?” 

She didn’t like it of course, but she could see his reasoning and nodded her acceptance. 

“Good girl.” He praised, kissing her hand. “Now go get cleaned up and I will be back shortly.” 

With that he was gone, out the door and off with a vengeance to find who had dared _fuck_ with his progeny. He could only assume witches were responsible, but he could think of no reason she would’ve encountered any so he headed to Fangtasia, where he’s last left her to see if he could find answers there. 

Slamming the door open on his way in the look on his face had many of his patrons scrambling for the way out. Allowing himself to feel a light satisfaction as the smarter half of the room ran past him for the exit, Eric scanned the room, his eye sifting through the remaining idiots in search of Ginger. 

He didn’t have to look hard however, as she popped up almost directly at his side. “Eric! Oh my lord, is it good to see you, you know you’re barely in here anymore, a girl is startin’ to take it personal-” 

“Ginger.” He deadpanned, cutting off her excessively chirpy attempt at flirtation. 

“Right, are you looking for Pam? Cause she ain’t been here for hours.” 

“Did she say anything to you when she left?”

“Nah, she was in talkin’ to _Jessi-_ ” Eric cut her off before she could even finish the syllable, already exhausted with how long this conversation was taking. 

“Jessica. Where is she?” He demanded.

“Right over there.” She answered, pointing to the middle of the dance floor where the baby vamp was grinding on some human.

With impressive speed, Eric grabbed her by the arm and pulled her into the office, flinging her into his chair. 

“Ouch, hey — rude much! No need to be so grabby Mister.” She grumbled, rubbing her arm.

“Did Pam say where she was going when she left?” He demanded, ignoring her complaint.

Looking far too guilty in the way she avoided his eyes, Jessica played with her hair as she answered with an unconvincing, _“no.”_

Eric stared at her, his gaze unwavering, not even giving her the reprieve of a _blink_ as he waited for her to change her answer. 

_“She didn’t! I swear!”_

“But you do know something.” Eric deduced. 

Jessica kept her silence, not wanting to betray either Pam or her maker, though she wasn’t sure how long she could keep their secret with Mr. Grumpy Pants in front of her looking all intense and murder-y. 

All it took was his fist slamming against the table and with a squeal, the redhead’s resolve was gone. “Bill sent her a text and then she ran off somewhere okay, that’s all I know!” 

_Bill._

He should’ve guessed. Of course this would be Compton’s fault. Had he been alive his blood would be boiling, pulsing under his skin in anticipation for what he would do to that simpering excuse for a king when he got his hands on him. He’d been about to speed off when he thought of Pam alone waiting for him and turned to Jessica. 

“Something’s wrong with Pam. You are to go 91 Moonlight Avenue, Shreveport and stay with her until I return.” Eric ordered before speeding off on his murderous way. 

“Sure thing, _dad._ ” Jess grumbled as he left, just who did that guy think he was anyway? _Givin’ her orders._ It was only in the second after that she registered what he said — _Something’s wrong with Pam._

 

_…_

 

Charging through Bill’s house undeterred by guards, _the ones that bothered getting in his way being quickly dispatched_ , Eric had _King Bill_ pinned to the floor of his office within seconds of entering. Unyielding fists connecting with his majesty’s head one after another in rapid succession.

Eric had to have hit him over thirty times before finally letting up so that he could growl against his battered face, _“I warned you to stay away from Pam”_

“You’ll find I honoured all your requests.” Bill replied, somehow managing to maintain this new air of superiority he’d been sporting regardless of the blood coating his face. 

_“Lies.”_

“You said that I was not to see her or speak her name, you did not say I could not call her.”  

The smug reply earned Bill an extra few punches to the jaw for good measure before Eric decided to get to the point. “What did you do to her?”

“I have done nothing to her, what are you so irate about?” He asked, starting to feel a little concerned that this may be more than Eric’s jealousy. 

“Her memory has been stolen, she has no idea who she is.”

Shocked, Bill finds himself explaining the situation regarding the witches at Moon Goddess and his concern about the matter once hearing about their little bird experiment. Still, he had no idea they were capable of doing something like this. If their power was already to the point where they could strip a vampire of their memory, this was much more serious a problem than even he had anticipated and the Authority would have to listen to him whether they liked it or not. 

“How _dare_ you send her into a den of necromancers, _my progeny_ , without consulting me.” Eric seethed, barely containing the urge to rip Bill limb from limb.

“I tried to send you but alas our phone call was cut rather short.” Came Bill’s snark reminder, as he walked back around his desk to sit, doing what he could to keep the pain from his face lest he give Eric the satisfaction of knowing the discomfort his _greeting_ had put him in.

“You should’ve gone yourself” The Viking spat back, disgusted with this so called King’s initiative. 

“I hadn’t the time, but I will see to it _personally_ and make sure her memory is resorted.” He conceded, rather guiltily. Were it any other vampire he wouldn’t have allowed himself to dwell on the matter, but for Pam he would ensure the situation was rectified. 

_“You will do nothing.”_ Eric snapped. “I will handle this.” 

“Eric there are to be no human casualties, the Authority has made it clear the punishment for such an offence will be to meet the true death.” He warned, for Pam’s benefit mainly. Honestly Bill couldn’t care less if Northman managed to get himself executed, he may even throw some kind of parade to commemorate the occasion, but Pamela depended on her maker even on her best of days. He couldn’t imagine the suffering his absence would bring her now. 

“Death would be too merciful for them.” He growled before making a swift exit, headed in the direction of Moon Goddess.

 

…

 

Jess had no idea what she was expecting Pam’s house to be but when she got there she knew she was at the right place. _A Mansion in the middle of Shreveport?_ That was Pam alright. 

“Holy Shit.” The redhead whispered as she walked in the door and took in her surroundings. _Definitely Pam._

“Who are you?”

The baby vamp nearly jumped out of her skin at the unexpected voice from behind, much closer than she was prepared for. Pam was barely an inch away when she turned to face her. 

“What do you mean wh-” Hand on her heart to stop it from racing, Jess furrowed her brow in confusion as she took a half step back to put them at a more comfortable distance. _Guess this was what Eric meant by ‘something wrong’. Thanks for the heads up, ya big ole jerk._  “..I’m Jessica.” 

She answered, bright smile upon her face as she met the blondes eyes with earnest. “I’m your friend — Eric sent me.”

“Eric sent you?” Pam questioned, seeming to relax slightly at the mention of his name, though her suspicion quickly transformed to worry, something Jess can’t say she’s ever seen on Pam. Seems she was in for a lot of _firsts_ tonight. First time she’d see Pam worried, first time she’d seen her without makeup or with her hair wet or with what looked to be _frilly pink pyjamas?_

“Yeah.” The redhead assured, hoping she looked sincere. 

“He’s not coming back is he?” The blonde asked, her voice quiet and her eyes ready to break Jessica’s heart.

“Of course he is!” She promised, hoping her confidence in this one fact would be contagious. “He’s just goin’ to find out what happened t’ya and then he’ll be right back, _promise_.” 

“That’s what he said.” 

“Well then you _know_ it’s true cause ya know, Eric would would never lie to ya, you’re .. _you’re Pam.”_ She reassured, lamely, not sure how else to explain it. But if it was one thing she knew, Pam and Eric weren’t like a normal Maker and Progeny, what they had was special and Pam wouldn’t ever have to worry about being abandoned. 

_“I’m Pam.”_ She repeated, almost as if telling herself. Forcing herself to re-form some kind of connection to the name. 

“Do ya really not remember anything?” Jessica asked curiously, still a little out of the loop on what was happening here. So far she was assuming total amnesia seeing as even her accent was gone. 

“Not a thing.” The blonde smiled weakly. “But you said you and I are friends? Maybe you could help me remember.” She asks hopefully. 

“Well I can sure try!” 

… 

 

They’d been at it for almost an hour now and Jess still hadn’t quite found a way to sum up the blonde that had become her idol in a way that made sense. “Okay, so uh..” _Explaining Pam to Pam…_

_“Oh, fuck it.”_ Jess decided, finally stopping her pacing to look back at Pam sitting on the stairs looking as if she was starting to get dizzy from all Jessica’s nervous movement. “Basically? You’re like the greatest vampire I’ve ever met. You’re mean and you’re sexy and you don’t take shit from anybody. You’re brave too, like the time the magister was torturing you with silver and you just- you never let up, it was goin’ on for days and you never even screamed you, you just took it in stride and you never gave that _prick_ the satisfaction.” The redhead babbled on, and if she weren’t dead she would’ve been blushing like a beetroot when she realised how much she’d been fawning over the older vampire. 

“You’re just.. you’re amazing and one day I hope I can turn out to be just like you.”

Pam smiled at that, a strange nurturing feeling tickling her cold heart as took in the baby vamp that was both familiar and unfamiliar all at once. She was flattered to be described with such admiration and she did have questions, namely _why on earth she was being tortured by the magister_ ( perhaps that’s why Eric insisted she stay hidden? ), Pam was feeling slightly overwhelmed by it all and decided it best to push on to her next question and ask any further questions to Eric when he returned. 

“And what do we do together?” 

“Oh, uh.. well mostly we stay at Fangtasia — your bar, a vampire bar. It’s fun there and theres lots a humans to eat. You work there most nights and I like to help out when you let me and then sometimes you’ll teach me things like — vampire stuff, y’know?” Jessica explains, ringing her hands with her usual nervous energy. “Like how to stop feedin’ on someone before you kill ‘em and _when_ to stop, stuff like that.” 

Nodding thoughtfully, Pam offers no comment in return and in a strange way it almost makes Jessica feel a little more relaxed because regular Pam wouldn’t have responded to here either.

“And you know, sometimes we just hang out, I guess.” 

_“Hang out?”_ Pam questions, not remembering the term.

“It’s funny you said the same thing when you were normal.” _Though it had been in very a different tone._ Jessica chuckled, before realising what she’d said and chastising herself. “Not that you’re not normal now, that’s not what I meant, what I _meant_ was-”

Pam cut her off with a chuckle of her own before she could babble herself any deeper into this whole, motioning for her to continue what she’d been saying before. 

“Sorry. Like uh, talk about things or more like _I_ talk about things and you listen a little and then tell me to shut up and give me some _Pam-like_ advice.” She explained finally.

“…do you wanna try it?” Pam asked after a long pause, curious herself how similar her _Pam-like_ advice might be.

“Oh. Uh, okay sure! Well, I already bothered you with this before and you told me that humans were temporary and I should try a few more before I tied myself to any.” She began, reciting the advice dutifully, her expression showing clear how un-useful she’d found it to be. “And I tried that,  I danced with damn near every guy in Fangtasia and I ate half of them, but the thing is I can’t help it.” Jess sighed hopelessly, tired enough of this whole mess she was in. 

“I thought I loved Hoyt but then . _.Jason_ ” Even saying his name brought a smile to her lips. “I just.. when I look at him I _know_ its the real. That kind of love that they write all the songs about, the kind that lasts forever.” She explained with a romantic sigh that made Pam chuckle.

“Well you know what they say about love.” Pam replied with a sigh of her own.

“It’s pain.” Jessica scoffed. 

The blonde merely shook her head as she leaned back against the wall. _“Love is the only gold.”_

The redhead was surprised by the response, having not expected to hear something so.. sweet from Pam, amnesiac or not. She’d never heard it said before but something about it touched her heart and she knew she wouldn’t forget it. “Thats beautiful.. where’d you hear it?”

Furrowing her brow, Pam tried to think back but all she found were blanks. All she could remember was the faintest feeling that it was old. “…I don’t know, it just came to me, I guess.”

“Alfred Lord Tennyson. He used to read to you as a girl back in London.” Eric interjected, aiding her memory as he walked through the door having been clearly listening for a short while. 

“Eric, you’re back!” Pamela cried gleefully, ignoring the fact that he was splattered with blood as she ran up and wrapped her arms around his neck. Another one Jessica could add to her list of first sights tonight. 

“I told you I would be.” Eric whispered, holding her close against him. “You really don’t remember him?” The witches had done some sort of incantation before all hell had broken loose and when he’d heard her quote her old friend, he’d had hope she might’ve had at least _some_ of her memories returned.

 “No, just the words.” She answered, sounding almost disappointed in herself. 

“It’s alright.” He soothed, placing a kiss against the crown of her head. “We’ll fix that soon enough.” 

“Does that mean you know whats wrong with her?” Jessica piped up from the stairs, oblivious to the fact she’d been entirely forgotten about. 

“She was cursed.” He answered, pulling back from his progeny, though his eyes stayed locked on Pam’s as he answered Jessica’s question. “By witches.” 

“Eric theres blood on your shirt.” Pam noted finally.

“Also witches.” He answered with a smirk that had Pam rolling her eyes like her old self. “I didn’t quite get what I needed tonight, but don’t worry. Soon.” 

Nodding, in response, Pam was perfectly relaxed considering the situation. She believed him when he said he’d handle it and she trusted him to do so, for now she was just pleased to have him back.

“Can Jessica stay here?” She asked him, neglecting to first ask the younger vampire if she would _like_ to stay over.

“If you’d like her to, prinsessa.” He answered, kissing her forehead.

Eyes wide, Jessica replied in agreement, surprised and almost.. _honoured_ in a way that Pam wanted her to stay. “Oh, okay — sure thing, um..” 

“We have plenty of room, just take yourself upstairs and prepare to go to ground.” Eric instructed, noticing her awkwardly trying to figure out what to do or where to go next

“Sure.” She nodded, relieved with the direction. Jessica left maker and progeny to themselves and went upstairs to show herself around

Finally alone, Eric smiled down at Pam affectionately, glad to see her returning it as he tucked her hair behind her ear. Of course he couldn’t say he was happy she was cursed, but.. he was at least pleased they were no longer at odds. For now anyway.

Though his reprieve was quickly broken by the loud reminder they had a guest for the night,  _“HOLY SHITBALLS, YOU HAVE MORE SHOES THAN CHER!”_

Sharing a laugh, Eric and Pam headed toward the stairs themselves. 

As day came, Jessica went to ground in Pam’s pink coffin whilst Eric and Pam took up her bed. Quietly, Eric told her a little more about his encounter with the witches and how he’d tried to get them to lift her curse, conveniently leaving out the part where he’d gotten _himself_ cursed in the process.

 

_Älskling = Sweetheart_

 

 


End file.
